A groundbreaking exploration of how finding one's way later in life
can be an advantage to long-term achievement and happiness.
"What Yogi Berra observed about a baseball game--it ain't over till
it's over--is true about life, and [Late Bloomers] is the ultimate
proof of this. . . . It's a keeper."--Forbes
We live in a society where kids and parents are obsessed with early
achievement, from getting perfect scores on SATs to getting into Ivy
League colleges to landing an amazing job at Google or Facebook--or even
better, creating a start-up with the potential to be the next Google,
Facebook or Uber. We see coders and entrepreneurs become millionaires or
billionaires before age thirty, and feel we are failing if we are not
one of them.
Late bloomers, on the other hand, are under-valued--in popular culture,
by educators and employers, and even unwittingly by parents. Yet the
fact is, a lot of us--most of us--do not explode out of the gates in
life. We have to discover our passions and talents and gifts. That was
true for author Rich Karlgaard, who had a mediocre academic career at
Stanford (which he got into by a fluke) and, after graduating, worked as
a dishwasher and night watchman before finding the inner motivation and
drive that ultimately led him to start up a high-tech magazine in
Silicon Valley, and eventually to become the publisher of Forbes
magazine.
There is a scientific explanation for why so many of us bloom later in
life. The executive function of our brains doesn't mature until age
twenty-five, and later for some. In fact, our brain's capabilities peak
at different ages. We actually experience multiple periods of blooming
in our lives. Moreover, late bloomers enjoy hidden strengths because
they take their time to discover their way in life--strengths coveted by
many employers and partners--including curiosity, insight, compassion,
resilience, and wisdom.
Based on years of research, personal experience, interviews with
neuroscientists, psychologists, and countless people at different stages
of their careers, Late Bloomers reveals how and when we achieve our
full potential.
Praise for Late Bloomers
"The underlying message that we should 'consider a kinder clock for
human development' is a compelling one."**--**Financial Times
"Late Bloomers spoke to me deeply as a parent of two millennials and
as a coach to many new college grads (the children of my friends and
associates). It's a bracing tonic for the anxiety they are swimming
through, with a facts-based approach to help us all calm down."--Robin
Wolaner, founder of Parenting magazine
